What Hurts the Most
by azarathangel
Summary: They were so close, but everything he couldn't say fell to pieces when she walked away. [BoothxBrennan]
1. Only For A Little While

**Story: What Hurts the Most Is Being Far Away for Far Too Long**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, only the scotch tape holding posters to my wall. No claim to Nickelback lyrics, Rascal Flatts lyrics or Bones here, sadly… Now I'm going to go cry, so thanks for reminding me I don't own them, GOSH!**

**Spoilers: None that I can think of…**

**Pairing: Booth x Brennan**

**Chapters: This is a two-part deal. I have the second part planned out but I haven't written it yet; just seeing if I should continue with this story.**

**Summary: They were so close, but everything he couldn't say fell to pieces when she walked away.**

**Chapter 1: Only for a Little While**

**Note: Please review this story it makes me happy plus it'll inspire me to write the next part of it sooner! Let me know if I should continue with this story, delete it, or just leave it as a one-shot. But for now it's a WIP.

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"_What hurts the most_

_Is being so close_

_And having so much to say_

_And watching you walk away_

_And never knowing_

_What could have been_

_And not seeing that loving you_

_Is what I was trying to do."_

_-Rascal Flatts_

"Yes, sir. Thank you very much." Brennan paused as the man on the other end spoke again. "Yes. I'll see you in a few days. Goodbye." The plastic phone clicked in its cradle as Dr. Brennan set it back onto the table. She stared at it for a second, taking in the enormity of what she had just done. This was her big break, everything she had ever dreamed off all coming together. Air flowed out of the couch cushions in a whoosh as she collapsed onto the furniture, one hand over her eyes with a throbbing headache approaching. So why was she so reluctant to do this? It was the ideal setting, the dream for any working citizen coming true. She sat up and stared at the blessed, or cursed, she couldn't decide which at the moment, electric appliance on her table. A year ago, maybe even a month ago, she would have jumped at the chance and have been on the next plane out within the day. But now, she wasn't so sure. Brennan ended her staring contest with the phone and sighed again. It was going to be a long night.

The large clock in her hallway announced the six o'clock hour, breaking Tempe from her thoughts. Stowing her current thought-tormenter under mental lock and key, she quickly walked back to her closet and hurriedly got ready for dinner.

Wong Foos was almost empty when he got there. It seemed Booth had caught the lull in the action between dinner and late-night happy hour crowds. He sat on his usual seat and waited patiently for the barstool next to him to become occupied with its usual resident. He didn't have long to wait, for no more than five minutes later, his partner walked into the room and gracefully sat at his side while ignoring the glances she received from the others in the building.

"Hey." She spoke quietly, almost shy. Booth ignored the uncharacteristic tone and cracked a perfect smile at her as Sid set drinks down in front of them.

"Hey, yourself." He grinned, studying her. Brennan seemed a little anxious, fiddling with the folds of her dark brown skirt as her hands twisted the fabric on her lap. Booth frowned slightly. This he could not ignore; this was not like his Bones. The normal fire was still in her smoldering blue eyes, but it was clouded by worry and apprehension.

"You okay?" He gently placed a hand over hers, the fidgeting stopping for the moment. She didn't jerk away immediately, but her hands instantly tensed and Booth slowly withdrew his gentle, caring touch.

She looked up into his concerned eyes, the warm brown calming her immensely. She could have laughed, despite herself. His brown was gently furrowed in a small frown, his full lips almost pouty as he studied her. Overall, he looked kind of cute… Brennan mentally slapped herself.

"I'm fine." She replied, offering a small smile at Booth. The automatic response was expected, and Booth decided not to dwell on it for the moment. He broke out into another smile, the warmth radiating from him calming Tempe even more.

"Hungry?"

The next hour or so was spent in amiable chatter, whether it be about work or not. Brennan managed to relax a bit, surprising herself at how easily the small talk came now after so long working with Booth. Eventually they lapsed into a comfortable silence, never awkward. Brennan finally remembered what she wanted to tell him and she began fidgeting again, her fingers twisting and turning under the countertop as she tried to conceal her discomfort. Booth's sharp eye picked up on it immediately.

"Bones, what is it? And don't tell me it's nothing, because it's not." His voice was serious and laced with concern. Tempe sighed; she was just putting off the inevitable by avoiding the subject. She would have to breach it sooner or later, though she preferred the latter of the two. Might as well tell him.

"I, I got another job offer." She blurted out. Blunt and concise, no skipping around the issue, no alternate route that might leave a man guessing as to the actual content of the conversation like other females might. That's what he loved about her; she wasn't like anyone else he had ever met… Booth quickly smothered his thoughts and turned his attention back to the nervous, albeit pretty scientist in front of him.

"That's great, Bones!" He spoke with enthusiasm, not quite grasping what it all meant. So that's what all the fuss was about? Brennan shook her head at his response, whether it was to him or her he wasn't sure.

"No, you don't understand." She started, hoping that was true. His enthusiasm had only promoted more fidgeting, though his response should have been good for her. But it only initiated another line of questioning for her brain: Did he want her gone? Did he even care she was leaving?

"I've been invited to work on temporary assignment at a lab out in California to work with the law forces there. If I like the work and they are satisfied with my work, then I have the option of staying out there and being my own boss at the institute there and leaving my work at the Jeffersonian to Zach since he's about ready to be certified." She told him. Booth just stared. There was a small shine of enthusiasm as she spoke, and he shifted in his seat to get a better look at her.

"Leave?" He stuttered out. Her words finally hit him like a ton of bricks and he still had trouble comprehending them. Bones, leave? He could not believe what he was hearing.

"You, you can't leave!" Booth almost shouted. He was desperate to keep her, but it came out angry. Brennan narrowed her sharp blue eyes in response. She was expecting a number of things, including disbelief, but anger? Never!

"You can't tell me what to do. I came here to let you know that I'm leaving because I thought you, of all people, could understand how huge this is and how important my work is to me. I could have simply walked out the door tomorrow morning and stepped onto a plane to California." She said calmly, though her eyes betrayed the angry fire that clawed at her insides.

"You were going to leave me to find out from the squint squad?" Booth automatically accused her, his desperation taking a defensive turn.

"No! That's why I'm here trying to tell you in a civil manner that I'm leaving!" Brennan's voice rose in volume. Booth wasn't backing down.

"You were going to leave me and just skip your merry little way across the country without telling me!" Brennan was now very flustered and trying very hard not to mutilate the finger that was now pointing at her.

"Stop putting words into my mouth, you incorrigible idiot. Besides, how is that even relevant? I'm leaving tomorrow, thought you should know, end of story." She growled. "Goodbye!" Brennan snatched her purse from the bar top and prepared to stalk out of the door. Booth caught her wrist as she stood to leave.

"But, I don't want you to go." His voice was soft now, hard desperation giving way to gentle pleading. Brennan spun around, ready to shout at him again. She faltered as their eyes locked, his deep brown eyes a swirl of confusion, desperation, and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"And why not?" She meant to snap, but it came out soft enough to match his own voice. She felt her heart flutter in her throat as he looked down to the wrist he still held in his hand. Her nerve endings were on fire where he held contact with her, and it wasn't because of anger.

"Why, Seeley?" She asked again in his hesitation. Booth's eyes snapped up to hers when she said his first name. He knew why he had stopped her, and the though the tone of her voice and the spark of hope in her eyes made him want to tell her and gather her up in his arms right then, he couldn't. Fear of rejection still showed its ugly face every time the words tried to make it past his lips.

"You… You're…" He tried to start. Brennan still hadn't reclaimed her arm yet, making it hard to think for him as he tried to ignore her silky skin in his hand.

"Yes?" She prodded gently, not rushing him.

Time stood still as Booth's mind raced. He couldn't tell her what he really wanted to say. So he settled for the next best thing, which probably was the worst thing as he thought back to it.

"You're a good anthropologist, Bones. I like working with you and the squints on the cases, and besides, you're my partner. I don't want you leaving me." He said a bit more than he wanted, but Brennan didn't catch the slip. Her once hopeful blue eyes were now icy and hard as Fort Knox once again closed around her heart. She tried to gently tug her arm from his strong grasp, not missing the fact that all she wanted to do was melt into his touch. But she did miss the disappointment in his eyes as she took a step back.

"I'm sorry." Her voice was just as icy as her brilliant eyes. "But I want to do this, Booth. For once, something for me." Booth sighed, still clinging to the hand she had not yet managed to extract from his grip.

"I know." He relented. There was no stopping her, not now, not ever. But that was a risk he was willing to take, no, wanted to take, just to be with her. But the sacrifices of wanting her were huge and many and this was one of them, maybe even the last.

"Have fun, Bones." He hung his head and Tempe's face softened as Booth backed down, his grip on her hand relaxing. This time, though, she kept the contact, holding his hand gently in hers.

"Goodbye, Seeley." She spoke tenderly and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. She knew she was going to miss him; he was the reason she was so unsure of everything. But he was letting her go, and no matter how much it hurt to walk away from him, she had to do it. If he wasn't going to chase after her now, then maybe there was no prospect of them ever being together. Maybe Angela had been wrong…

"It's only for a little while." Her departing words stung him as the warmth of her hand left and she began to walk away. Booth's hand dropped limply to his lap as he watched her leave him, taking in the gentle sway of her hips, the length of her auburn hair, and her lingering scent as she left him. But most of all, he held onto the hope and gentleness he caught a glimpse of in her eyes. It seemed to be all he had left. Brennan paused at the door, allowing herself one more glance backwards to see a motionless Booth at the bar. Then she turned once more to leave, Booth and his inner demons suffering at the bar.

"Goodbye, Temperance."

"_Who was I to make you wait?_

_Just once chance,_

_Just one breath_

_Just in case there's just one left._

'_Cause you know,_

_You know, you know…_

_That I love you,_

_I have loved you all along."_

_-Nickelback

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Weeeeeeeell? Should I continue? Or leave this as a depressing one-shot lol. I have another part planned out if anybody wants it. Just leave a review and you can have it within the week, maybe. -Ash


	2. It Starts With Goodbye

**Story: What Hurts the Most Is Being Far Away for Far Too Long**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, only the scotch tape holding posters to my wall. No claim to Foreigner lyrics, Carrie Underwood lyrics or Bones here, sadly…**

**Spoilers: None that I can think of…**

**Pairing: Booth x Brennan**

**Chapters: I have changed this to a three-part thing so I can get chapters up sooner for the lovely reviewers! Part three in the makings, I have two free periods now, but finals are in a week.**

**Summary: They were so close, but everything he couldn't say fell to pieces when she walked away.**

**Chapter 2: It Starts With Goodbye**

**Note: Please review this story it makes me happy plus it'll inspire me to write the next part of it sooner! But for now it's a WIP.**

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"_What seemed to be an infatuation_

_Is so different now._

_I can't get by if we're not together._

_I'm longing for the time,_

_I'm longing for the day_

_Hoping that you will promise to be mine_

_And never go away._

_I don't want to live without you,_

_I could never live without you,_

_Live without your love._

_I ask myself but there's no explanation_

_For the way I feel._

_I know I've reached the right destination_

_And I know it's real."_

_-Foreigner _

The blank ceiling staring back at him provided no distraction from the whirling thoughts that threatened to overcome him; thoughts that tumbled and flew through his brain at breakneck speeds, likened to a dryer on high out of control. Booth finally rolled over and settled his distressed gaze on the clock on his bedside table. If sleep wouldn't come seven hours earlier, why would it start now? He rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom.

Soon he was in his car, headed to work. Well, he should have been. Two red lights and a stop sign later, Booth found himself speeding down Brennan's street, his heart racing and hoping he wasn't too late. He needed to apologize; he needed to keep her here in D.C.

He felt his stomach flip when he saw her. Brennan was locking her door behind her for the last time and had her laptop and bag with her. A taxi waited in her driveway, and as he saw her face as she turned to walk down her steps, he saw the face of an immensely sad woman. As she put her hand to the handle of the taxi, she glanced back at her house and hung her head. The door opened and she placed her bags in. Booth's heart stopped as well as his car, and he leapt from the vehicle without bothering to turn it off. He sprinted across the street and cut across her neighbor's lawns in a desperate attempt to catch the taxi. The sound of a slamming car door broke the early morning silence of the quiet street and the taxi backed out into the street, heading away from Booth. He pounded out the last few meters to her yard and then continued across the next.

"Bones!" He called out as loud as he could through his gasping breath. He doubted she heard him, but for some reason she chose just then to look back. Maybe she did hear him, or maybe she just wanted to see her house once more before flying across the country. For whatever reason, she turned, and she noticed him. Her eyes flew open and her mouth formed his name. She spun back around and the taxi screeched to a stop. Next thing he knew, she was out of the car and carefully walking towards him, doubting his appearance.

"Booth?" They took another step towards each other, both unsure of what to do. Booth's chest rose and fell as he regained his breath.

"You're, leaving so soon?" He gasped, motioning towards the waiting taxi.

"Yes." She looked puzzled, then annoyed. "Weren't you listening to me last night?" Booth scratched the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly at her from beneath his lashes. Must've missed that part last night…

"Sorry." He apologized. He sighed and Brennan gave him a sad half-smile.

"Now you know." She replied. The taxi driver honked at her.

"The meter's running, lady!" He shouted from the car. Brennan glanced back at him before turning her attention back to the desperate agent in front of her.

"Well, bye Booth." She said softly, turning to leave. Booth's mind flashed back to the night before and he once again reached out and clasped her hand.

"Wait, Bones…" He started. And just like the night before, she spun around to meet him head-on.

Her heart pounded fiercely against her ribs. Last night, the disappointment of Booth's words, or lack of, after stopping her for the first time had torn her apart. She could only hope this would be different, though half of her doubted it would be.

"Yes?" Even the pessimistic half of her could do nothing to stop the hope that crept into her voice. Booth opened and closed his mouth, no sounds emitting from the speechless man who had so much to say.

"How long will you be gone?" He asked, settling on neutral ground for the moment.

"A few months." Brennan replied, torn between letting disappointment tear her apart once again and holding onto her heart for a little longer.

"Oh, alright." Booth lost his courage as the taxi driver honked again, sorely tempting him to shatter the windows and infuriating horn with the loaded gun at his hip. He tried to start again, but the horn had broken his resolve.

"Well, see ya around, Bones." He stuck his hands in his pockets, fighting himself every inch of the way. His heart threatened to leap from his chest, tried to grab for Tempe, but as much as he hated to admit it, Seeley Booth was a coward. Why couldn't he just spit it out? Booth continued to beat himself up as the auburn-haired woman in front of him tensed.

"Bye." Brennan replied coldly, once again hiding behind the ice that had been her second skin. But even the ice couldn't freeze the tears that tried to break through. She kept her eyes dry and emotions locked. Turning and walking away from him, it was even harder the second time around.

The taxi driver gunned the car down the street, and as Tempe stared out the back window, she allowed a solitary tear to roll down her otherwise composed face. It was the first she had shed in many years.

Head down and hands shoved deep in the restricting pockets, Booth kicked a clump of dirt and slowly walked back to his still-running car five houses down. Slamming his palm on the steering wheel, he pulled away from the curb and drove the opposite direction his heartbroken forensic anthropologist had gone.

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The cool air of the Jeffersonian blasted Booth in the face as he entered the institute. It was a welcome alternative to the humid, heavy air outside; signs of the coming storm. He turned to the now-familiar building more out of habit than anything else, wanting to see the familiar faces of his favorite squint squad before he had to leave until Brennan returned.

_If she returns…_ His mind darkly countered. Booth shook the thought off and continued down the hallway.

The air in the lab was just as heavy as it was outside, though much cooler. Faces were drawn and somber, and it was overall a very depressing place to be at the moment. That suited Booth just fine; it would match his equally dark mood as opposed to the occasionally cheerful joking he would encounter in his own building. He spotted Angela across the room and gave her a little wave, swiping his card and walking up the steps to where she was working. Immediately the forensic artist had flown to him and began pushing him back down the stairs.

"What are you doing here?" She almost shouted, poking his chest with a pencil-smudged finger. Booth's eyebrows shot up into his hairline at the sudden outburst from the normally calm artist.

"You should be out there getting our Brennan back!" Angela continued. The noise had drawn several looks their way and Hodgins and Zach were now approaching the two.

"We couldn't get her to stay." Zach mentioned in between Angela's berating comments.

"Angela was convinced you could." Hodgins muttered. Angela whipped around to turn her anger towards the unsuspecting entomologist.

"You! Like you even tried! All you did was talk about conspiracy theories and pulling people who helped with federal cases away so that the government wouldn't have so much trouble covering up murders!" Angela hotly reminded him.

"Well you were too convinced Booth could do anything to try too hard, either." Zach added under his breath, not wanting to call the attention of the angry artist upon himself. Angela whirled to face her best friend's assistant.

"Could? He still can!" A look at the clock sent her back to Booth. "Her flight doesn't leave for another thirty minutes. Go get our anthropologist back." She gave him one last shove and he stumbled back into the main hallway, Angela hot on his heels leaving two shaking men back at the foot of the lab stairs. She pressed her face up to his and jabbed his chest again with her finger.

"You go get Tempe back, and for God's sake tell her the damn truth." She lowered her voice dangerously and sent him staggering once more backwards. Both nodded and turned to run down the hall with a new resolve rapidly spreading a fire through his veins. He had thirty minutes.

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Using his siren and flashing the handy FBI badge at anyone in his way, he managed to arrive at the airport in twenty minutes, though a highly unethical twenty minutes. Another five had him arguing with the poor ticket girl, ending with Booth finally buying a plane ticket to Nevada and running to the terminal. An eternity later, he was running as fast as he ever had towards gate 23.

The ominous clouds outside only made Tempe shift even more in the already uncomfortable chair. If her plane was delayed for even a minute, she would have even more time to rethink everything and probably would send herself running into a certain FBI agent's office unannounced. But she had to go; she couldn't rely on anyone for happiness. Booth had changed her, and it wasn't like her to switch her life around for one man who might or might not feel the same for her like she did him. Booth couldn't keep triggering all the confusing emotions he did, and if he didn't fight for her to stay, his feelings obviously didn't measure up to the magnitude hers did. So she'd have to distance herself from the world once more, surrounding herself with work like old times and become the old Brennan once again.

The overly-perky voice across the intercom announced that flight 398570 to Sacramento would be boarding momentarily. Brennan picked her laptop up from near her feet and gathered her carry-on items in her bag. She looked out the large window again and sighed. It would take some time to readjust, to forget the rush she felt when Booth accidentally brushed up against her, the rush she felt every time a new case came in. There would be other cases, but this time there wouldn't be a Seeley Booth attached to them. This was it.

Booth shoved people aside in his hurry to get to Brennan's gate, but even so, the congested path took forever to get through. He saw the number '23' at the end of the long corridor and a shrinking line of people slowly passing through the gate door to board the waiting plane. Booth pressed on, the gate growing closer as the line slowly disappeared. He caught a break in the populace at the end of the hallway and sprinted towards Brennan's gate, but the door had already closed. He pulled his badge from his breast pocket, ready to use it to get his Bones back even if it cost him a suspension. As he came to the desk by the door, the plane slowly backed out and began to roll towards the runway. The lady behind the desk battered her eyelashes in the most annoying way at him and asked in a nasally voice,

"Is anything the matter, sir?" She batted her eyelashes again.

'Bones would never do that…' Booth thought to himself. He slid the badge back into his pocket and turned his attention from the departing plane to the woman.

"No, thank you." He said dejectedly. She snatched the forgotten plane ticket from his left hand and read it.

"Gate 19 is back that way, sir." She smiled, pointing to the left of the gate down another hall. She handed the ticket back to him and Booth nodded, distracted.

"Thank you." He turned and walked back the way he came from, the lady shouting after him.

"Sir? Sir! Sir your gate is that way!" He ignored the calls and continued to walk, the hall now empty. Life just wasn't fair. Need to run down the hall to catch love and the place is spilling out into the parking lot. Walking back after letting love slip through your fingers, and it's just you and the linoleum, making it even lonelier. A steady rain began to fall as he walked to his car. Booth looked up into the sky, watching as a plane took off. He watched the windows, small faces obscured by rain and cloudy thoughts. As he stared, he wondered if Bones was looking for him, too.

"_It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life,_

_Starts with goodbye._

_I know there's a blue horizon_

_Somewhere up ahead, just waiting for me,_

_Getting there means leaving things behind,_

_Sometimes life's so bitter sweet._

_Time, time heals,_

_The wounds that you feel,_

_Somehow, right now,_

_It starts with goodbye."_

_-Carrie Underwood_

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Here's your second part! I've got the ending all planned out and everything, it'll be a real doozy. Haha I've always wanted to say that… eh hem, anyways. Review, my lovies and part three will come even sooner! –Ash, as always.


	3. To You I'll Always Return

**Story: What Hurts the Most Is Being Far Away for Far Too Long**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, only the scotch tape holding posters to my wall. No claim to Avril Lavigne lyrics, Bryan Adams lyrics, Rascal Flatts lyrics, or Bones here, sadly…**

**Spoilers: Minor for the Skull in the Desert**

**Pairing: Booth x Brennan**

**Chapters: Here is the last chapter! Thank you for all the reviews, they were lovely! And so inspiring, mwaha! **

**Summary: They were so close, but everything he couldn't say fell to pieces when she walked away.**

**Chapter 3: I Will Always Return**

**Rating now 'T' for some Booth-related language issues**

**Note: Please review this story it makes me happy plus it'll inspire me to write the next part of it sooner! Now COMPLETE!**

**Yet Another Note: OMG SEASON FINALE NEXT WEEK! Freak out, dude! I'm so excited and the end of last night's episode was so amazing with the hands and wow! Yes, in other words, Ash is excited.**

**Yet ANOTHER Note: I decided to get this up even faster than what I originally planned with the finale coming out and all because poor Tempo had Hot Blooded blast out in the middle of the library because of me. Silly girl, you know what a freaking volume button is:D on with the story!**

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"_I'm waiting in the dark,_

_I thought that you'd be here by now._

_There's nothing but the rain,_

_No footsteps on the ground._

_Isn't anyone trying to find me?_

_Won't somebody come take me home?_

_Won't you take me by the hand,_

_Take me somewhere new._

_I'm looking for a place,_

_I'm searching for a face,_

'_Cause nothing's going right,_

_And everything's a mess_

_And no one likes to be alone."_

_-Avril Lavigne_

The heavy rains played a solemn march as they drummed steadily against the windshield. Lightning and thunder added to the bitter symphony, Booth's mood darkening with the sky. He still sat at the airport, not moving from the parking lot where he now sat in his car, brooding. He contemplated going to work, but he would be too distracted to do anything productive, so work was out of the question and he had nowhere to go.

No sooner had he called in sick then Angela's name and number flickered across his incoming call screen. Booth smiled ruefully to himself and flipped the phone open, wondering if that was the smartest thing to do. She would keep calling if he didn't answer, anyways…

"Booth." He knew it was Angela, but old habits die hard.

"Well?" Angela cut right to the chase, but she guessed from his voice that all had not gone as planned. The gnawing fear inside her increased tenfold as Booth sighed.

"Her plane left," he checked his watch, "twenty three minutes ago."

"With her on it?"

"Yes," was the terse reply.

"Did you even tell her? Oh, God, Booth! I mean, men can never say the right thing at the right time but-"

"I couldn't get there in time, alright?" Booth exploded into the phone, taking his pent-up frustration out on the artist. "There were too many damn people in my way and the line for security was huge and the man in front of me didn't get the idea that you take ALL of the metal objects out of your fucking pockets the FIRST time through the damn machine, not a nickel and a dime every time the system beeps at you!" Booth shouted. He heard Angela sigh from the other end.

"Booth, sweetie, I'm so sorry." She said, smartly ignoring his comments about the airport. "Really, I am. I should have tried harder to get her to stay…" Booth heard Angela sniff over the line and he felt guilty.

"No, Ange, don't beat yourself up. She was going whether or not you locked her into her office." Booth tried to comfort her.

"Thanks. But, she shouldn't be gone to long, right? I doubt she'll be able to stay away from you." Angela made an attempt at humor, covering up her own need for a hysterical outburst at the situation.

"Think so, Ange?" Booth tried to help keep her mind on something else besides her own guilt.

"Yes, Booth." Her sympathetic voice replied. "I have work to do, but I'll talk to you later."

"Bye. And Angela?" He told her, "Don't be so hard on yourself. You don't have to be this strong for everyone. She's your best friend, and a little emotion every once in a while never hurt anybody." _Except me and Bones…_ He kept his last thoughts to himself, but he was sure Angela was thinking the same thing.

His response was a dial tone, but he didn't mind much. He hung his own phone up and sighed; three months was too long. Still, determined to try and move on in case Brennan decided not to come back, he finally started his car and headed back home through the now flooded streets of D.C.

As he pulled up into his driveway, a flash of lightning illuminated a familiar car in front of him. The flash of recognition accompanying the lightning made his heart race and mouth go dry. The silver Mazda that was now parked next to his car could only be hers.

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"He couldn't get to her in time." Angela shook her head slowly as she approached the two men of the team, or 'squint squad' as Booth had so affectionately dubbed them. Only now, they were without a leader.

"Swing and a miss…" Hodgins muttered, the tight curls atop his head shaking in an echo of Angela's own black locks. Zach remained silent.

A short beep broke their concentration as Dr. Goodman approached them from the lab's stairs.

"Good morning." He greeted them solemnly. The other three nodded in return. Dr. Goodman seemed lost in thought for a moment before concentrating his piercing gaze on one Zach Addy.

"Mr. Addy, I need you to come with me. We must discuss your upcoming certification process." He motioned Zach towards his office and prepared to follow him. A look back at Angela and Jack, though, halted his progress.

"Oh, don't look so down, people!" He exclaimed, snapping everyone out of wherever they were at the un-Goodman-like behavior. He settled a stern look on each of them as he studied the shorter scientist and artist before him.

"Agent Booth will go after her, we know that. Sure he failed the first time, but Booth is determined just as Dr. Brennan is. It is only a matter of time before Temperance returns to us at the Jeffersonian." The lab director explained. "Please, do not fret. Return to work; Dr. Brennan will be back within the week." The man seemed confident in his prediction.

"Month." Hodgins challenged. Dr. Goodman raised an eyebrow.

"Day." Zach piped up for the first time since Booth had left, earning him not one but three strange looks.

"Is that a bet, Mr. Addy?" Dr. Goodman directed the comment at both Hodgins and Zach. Angela threw her hands up in the air and stalked off.

"Men…" She muttered.

"I do believe we have upset Ms. Montenegro." Goodman pondered. Hodgins shrugged.

"Every individual person deals with loss a different way. While some people joke and cover emotions up with various tasks, others tend to brood and become easily agitated. It's probable that Angela sees us as insensitive people and is thus annoyed with us for the moment." Zach rationalized Angela's behavior, sounding dangerously like the missing forensic anthropologist. Hodgins shrugged again and the three walked to Dr. Goodman's office.

Angela was fuming as she slammed her office door and began pacing back and forth, the normally comforting art failing to provide the solace they had soothed her with in the past.

How could they joke about such a thing, even Dr. Goodman? She sunk into her desk chair and flopped her head on the desk, anger gone and replaced by an overwhelming sadness in her heart. The jet black waves fell across her face, concealing the distressed eyes and trembling lips. As she fought the sudden tears back, she allowed her thoughts to wander.

Brennan was the most independent person she knew, even with Booth around. She was also one of the smartest, but with the two continually butting heads for dominance or whatever else they chose to argue about on a particular day, it both amused and distressed Angela at how oblivious Brennan was to love. But even she couldn't deny the obvious attraction, so Angela hadn't expected her best friend to jet off across the country at the first opportunity. Maybe before Booth, but not now. Brennan was dedicated to her work, but _still_. Angela lifted her head from the desk and shuffled through a drawer, looking for something. She finally found a small picture frame buried beneath piles of old drawings and she removed it from its paper bound hiding place, gently wiping off the dusty glass as she gazed at it with a small, watery smile.

It was a picture of Tempe and Booth from some FBI gala or another. Brennan's hair fell around her smiling face in loose auburn waves, her bright blue eyes magnified by the eyeliner and mascara Angela had coated on before the party. Her dress was a long, elegant black one with a bold slit running up the side of her leg. Booth's hair was spiked in his traditional way, and his black suit complimenting Tempe's dress beautifully. The two were smiling at each other, laughter dancing in their eyes. The two were in the middle of dancing, the arm Booth had wrapped around Tempe's slender waist pulling her tight to him as he whispered some grand secret to Brennan. She was bent backwards slightly as he leaned into her, and her arms rested loosely on his broad shoulders, the perfect picture of comfort and belonging. Her smiling expression as she stared into his eyes was soft and caring, and her affections were mirrored in Booth's face. All of this caught in a single photograph and Angela with the only copy. The two hid their emotions so well the rest of the time, but when they decided to let something out every once in awhile, it was beautiful. An old picture of Kirk covered the picture of Tempe and Booth, and as Angela slipped the careworn photograph back into the silver frame, she felt tears once again threaten to fall from her dark eyes. She smiled sadly at the glossy picture of her dead boyfriend, sighing. Angela could only hope that her two friends might discover what they had before it was too late, like it was for her.

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The rush of hope and excitement of seeing Brennan's car was quickly deflated in one ugly revelation as Booth's hand found her car keys in his pocket. He pulled them out and looked at them, lightning flashing off the gleaming metal. There was her house key, her office key, her billions of other keys, and the skull keychain. Those keys brought back memories, the worst in ones from a warehouse. But for now, Booth's thoughts settled on last night.

"_Look after my car for me?" Her eyes pleaded with him as he studied her from where he stood in his doorway._

"_Does that mean you're coming back?" He casually countered, his grip on the doorframe involuntarily tightening._

"_Maybe." She dismissed his casual question with a casual answer, her tone airy and unassuming. She held her keys out in front of her, a peace offering for the time._

"_Alright." Booth relented, fingers closing around the metal when she dropped them into his hand. Brennan smiled at him from his steps._

"_Thanks. I'll catch a cab home." She turned to leave, but stopped at the foot of his steps._

"_Will you be okay, Booth?" She didn't turn around as she voiced her thoughts._

"_Do you have to leave?" He didn't answer her. Her shoulders rose and fell in a sigh or a shrug, he couldn't tell, before watching her walk down the sidewalk to go find a cab, the wind whipping her hair from her neck, revealing an earring Booth knew well._

The depressed FBI agent sighed heavily, lamenting his loss once more. His head dropped to the steering wheel and he squeezed a concealed tear from his brown eyes, the salty drop pausing as it caught on thick eyelashes before splattering on the black leather. How could he have been so stupid as to let such a prize get away? He knew there had been a reason he ended it with Tessa, and he wanted to pursue that reason. But he couldn't even get the damn words out when it mattered. Why couldn't life be like his dreams? It was so easy there, those three little words, five happy years, then beautiful children running around their yard in front of a huge, gorgeous house on the outskirts of D.C. Booth angrily brushed the tear away, mad at himself for being weak, for being afraid. He turned the car off and defiantly, if stupidly, stepped out into the rain as lighting cut effortlessly through the choked skies, thunder rumbling after it.

Booth turned his face to said sky, letting the rain wash over him and whisk away his frustrations, if only it were that easy… The cold water crashed into his tense body and soaked his clothes, the fabric sticking to him like a second skin. It ran down his face in rivulets, the frigid temperature and soothing noises around him a welcome distraction. Another echo of thunder threw his common sense back at him with a whipping wind, chilling him through the soaking clothes. The grass was soggy beneath his sloshing shoes as he trudged up to his door, glad the rain would conceal his surely teary face.

In the dark of the storm, he didn't see the large black shape across his steps and he tripped over something soft as he tried to get to the door. The shadow yelped and pulled its head from its hands, leaping up from the steps and moving away from the surprised man who stood next to his house door. Another streak of lightning crackled across the black clouds, illuminating a soaking Tempe Brennan. Booth wasted no time stepping back down to her level.

Brennan opened her mouth to say something, but instead of listening or even letting her begin, Booth pulled her to him and crushed her lips with his, a furious passion moving through him into her. Without hesitation, her arms found their way around his neck, one hand tangled in the dripping hair on his neck and the other holding his head to her own soaking skin. He held her against him with one strong arm around her waist and the other holding the back of her neck. He turned them so she was against the railing of the steps, her head tilted back and their bodies still pressed tightly together. Everything that ever needed to be said flowed between them in that connection, every word left unsaid, and every confession that needed to be voiced. At last the need for air halted the ardent dance of tongues and they separated an inch or so.

"I thought you'd left me." He whispered against her lips, kissing them gently once more.

"I thought you didn't need me." She replied. Booth closed his eyes tightly, her words piercing his heart and reminding him of what could have been.

"Never say that again." He punctuated each word with a tender kiss. Brennan laughed softly against his lips.

"I couldn't get on that plane. I tried, but I couldn't." She whispered.

"I was there, you know." He murmured against her mouth. He felt her lips curve up in a smile.

"I figured." Her mouth found his again and they shared another kiss, frustration and time fueling the fervor. Brennan pulled back and gave him another gentle peck on his lips before nuzzling her nose into the crevice where neck met shoulder. Booth tightened his grip around her and softly pressed his lips to her temple.

"And don't ever leave me again, either." He murmured, rocking her back and forth against his body.

"I won't." She whispered into his neck, his own words sending pleasant vibrations through her body as he spoke to her.

"Promise?" Thunder crashed again as lightning seared the blackened clouds, the dark atmosphere around them tightening their grip on each other.

"Promise."

"_I hear the wind call your name_

_The sound that leads me home again._

_It sparks up the fire – a flame that still burns,_

_Oh it's to you I'll always return._

_I can't stand the distance – I can't dream alone._

_I can't wait to see you – Yeah I'm on my way home._

_Now I know it's true,_

_My every road leads to you,_

_And in the hour of darkness darlin'_

_Your light gets me through._

_It's to you I will always, always return."_

_-Bryan Adams_

_**"And God bless the broken road that lead me straight to you."**_

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It is finished! Hope everyone enjoyed that, so please leave a review on the way out to let me know if you did or not! Now, Tempo, you are not allowed to string me up by my poor little tootsies with your furby breathing down my back because I have finished. And disabling the off-button is just MEAN! Yes, so, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! There's a nice little purple/blue/lavender/lilac/mauve/indigo/violet WHATEVER button down there on the left. Go push it, don't worry, it doesn't bite. Again, review, my duckies! Cookies and chocolate-covered Booths to all! -Ash


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